China and the Philippines have emphasized their sovereignty and jurisdiction by simultaneously raising their national flags on a reef in the South China Sea (known as the West Philippine Sea in the Philippines), which is the subject of territorial disputes.
The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) stated on the 27th that its security forces landed on three reefs in the South China Sea. They also released a photo of five security forces members raising the Philippine flag on one of the reefs. It has not been confirmed whether the location where the photo was taken is Sandy Cay (known as Tiaozhanzhao in China). However, earlier, the Chinese state-run Global Times released images of four members of its Coast Guard raising the Five-Starred Red Flag above Tiaozhanzhao, indicating that the Philippines has responded in kind.
The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea stated, "We observed the 'illegal presence' of seven vessels belonging to the Chinese Coast Guard and China's militia at a distance of 914 meters from one of the reefs," adding, "This operation demonstrates the Philippine government's unwavering commitment and resolve to defend the nation's sovereignty and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea."
China immediately protested. Liu Dejun, the Spokesperson for the Chinese Coast Guard, said, "Despite warnings from the Chinese side, six personnel from the Philippines operated around Tiaozhanzhao," and claimed, "The actions from the Philippines infringe upon China's territorial sovereignty and undermine peace and security in the South China Sea."
Sandy Cay, which belongs to the Spratly Islands (known as Nansha Islands in China), has been a region of conflict between China and the Philippines, along with Scarborough Shoal (known as Huangyan Island in China) and Second Thomas Shoal (known as Ren'ai Jiao in China). It is located only 4.6 km away from the Philippines' Pagasa Island. Thitu Island serves as a Filipino outpost in the South China Sea, inhabited by over 200 civilians.
Notably, the activities by the Philippines occurred during the annual joint drills with the U.S. military, known as "Balikatan." This year's exercise, which involves 17,000 personnel, will continue until next month on the 9th, with the U.S.'s new anti-ship missile system (NMESIS) also being deployed. The Philippines has stated that the exercise aims to strengthen national defense capabilities and is not aimed at any particular country, but China criticized it as provocative.
Since 1953, China has drawn a self-declared maritime boundary known as the "Nine-Dash Line," claiming that 90% of the South China Sea belongs to it. This has led to conflicts with the Philippines, as well as Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei, for over 90 years.